The present invention relates to electronic gaming units. More particularly, the present invention relates to an electronic gaming unit which is interactive with a gaming console and a point of sale console for selling games, such as games of chance, during or prior to a gaming session. While bingo is particularly discussed herein, it should be appreciated that the gaming unit can be used for a variety of other games, such as Keno or the like. In one embodiment, the gaming unit is part of a system of multiple spaced wireless gaming units that are used to play games of chance, such as bingo, when game information is provided by a central gaming machine, such as a bingo console in communication with the wireless gaming units.
The game of bingo commonly involves a group of players and a caller, who announces randomly selected indicia, which commonly comprise integral numbers within a predetermined range, i.e. 1-75. For Keno, the numerical range could be 1-90. Bingo players typically play several cards at a time, up to eighteen or more cards, in order to increase their odds of winning. Manually playing multiple cards can be tedious, however, leaving one tired or prone to errors. With paper bingo faces there is also the possibility of cheating, i.e. bingo players attempting to alter the numbers on the paper, or using bingo paper from an earlier session.
There have been many attempts in the prior art to provide a system for electronic play of a bingo session. The systems generally include electronic gaming units which aid a player in playing bingo games. Such gaming units may assist a player in overseeing more bingo cards than would be possible or practical otherwise.
In particular, U.S. Pat. No. 4,475,157 discloses a system including a gaming unit, where between each game the player must manually enter each number from each card into the memory unit. The manual entry, however, is slow and tedious, and creates a practical limitation on the number of bingo cards that can be entered before and between bingo game sessions.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,768,151 discloses a system including a gaming unit that provides for the creation of whole playing cards simply by the manual entry of a card identification number. This process improves the speed of entering the selected cards into the game piece memory, but requires the cooperation of bingo card manufacturers to provide identification numbers for their cards such that each identification number is associated with one specific pattern of numbers on a card.
Both of the above approaches are simply methods for assisting a player in an otherwise traditional, manual game of bingo. Therefore, improvements to these systems would be desirable.
On the other hand, electronic gaming systems have been developed, where each player is equipped with a gaming unit and the use of paper playing cards is either eliminated or at least reduced. These systems typically include a central computer which performs administrative tasks including sale of bingo cards, running the bingo game, and sometimes electronic payment to the winners. In connection therewith, players sit at hard-wired electronic bingo stations or may be given wireless gaming units, through which the players are provided with the desired number of card configurations for each game.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,856,787 and 5,043,887 disclose hard-wired or network electronic bingo systems where a central computer communicates with each remote unit before and during the bingo game. All purchases and all game-related data may be communicated through communication lines between the central computer and the remote units. The drawbacks of these games include the resultant undesirable “Las Vegas” feel of the game, the general lack of portability of the system, the lack of portability of the individual playing units, and the complications that can arise from maintaining a computer network system.
The wireless gaming unit approach marries the best of all of the above approaches. The typical system includes a central computer, which administers the game. The player purchases a number of games to be played and a number of bingo faces to be played in each game. The computer generates the playing card information and downloads the information into the gaming unit. A player carries the gaming unit in much the same way as the player would carry one or more bingo cards or sheets in a traditional bingo game. Throughout the bingo games, the player optionally inputs the called numbers into the gaming unit through a keypad or a touchscreen, and the gaming unit alerts the player if one or more of the stored cards achieve a winning sequence. This approach retains the feel of a traditional bingo game, including the fact that the player carries away the purchased bingo cards, in the portable unit, and can enter the called numbers manually.
Currently available portable or hand held gaming units are not optional for a number of reasons. First, the screen is not set at the correct viewing angle. Second, the player is provided with either a keypad or a touchscreen, but not both in the same unit. Third, the current designs are not movable from a use position to a transport position and vice versa. Fourth, they do not have an optimized power management system. Fifth, they do not allow a player to identify himself to the gaming unit in a time-efficient manner. Sixth, the current gaming units are not optimized in other ways that would be useful for gaming.
Current electronic bingo systems which use wireless gaming units also require some means of downloading or configuring each gaming unit before each session of play. This configuration generally includes loading the number and description of bingo cards purchased by the player, the type of win pattern and variation of bingo game for each game of the playing session, and other game options. Also, as the play software is updated with a newer version, the updates have to be delivered to each gaming unit. Such downloading of information typically uses some form of wired or wireless, communication link which configures the gaming unit at the point-of-sale cashier station when the player enters the bingo hall.
As the capability of electronic technology and the displays used in such portable gaming units increases, it becomes possible for the gaming units to play games and attractions other than bingo, or more than one type of game at a time. Many of these games will allow the player to accumulate prize winnings and other information. At the end of play, this information must be transferred from the gaming units back to a central computer station to allow for payment of prizes or other accounting of winning information.
All of these requirements of loading game information to the gaming unit at the start of play and reading prize information after play require significant amounts of handling and transportation of the gaming units in the bingo hall. Since a single bingo hall can contain hundreds of such units, the handling of the portable gaming units for updating purposes is a significant problem for the bingo operators and also frequently leads to damage of the units due to rough handling or dropping when carrying the units.
Accordingly, it has been considered desirable to develop a better hand held or portable gaming unit, together with a system which efficiently meets the requirements of administering a game, increases the efficiency of updating software on the gaming units and which minimizes the handling requirements for the gaming units.